AP Village Ward Secretariat: Formation of committee for classification of secretariats – Trade unions protest

Let it be known that the state government is ready to improve the village secretariat system. As part of this… Shashi Bhushan Kumar, Principal Secretary to the State Government, appointed a committee for classification of secretariats and issued Jivo No. 34.

Orders were given to appoint four members in the committee. He said that four members have been appointed as per the orders of the Governor of Andhra Pradesh. The orders state that the committee will have to submit its report to the government on or before February 28.

Reforms in Gram Panchayats

As per Jivo No. 393 issued by the government on 24 November 2010, cluster system has been introduced in Gram Panchayats. Gram Panchayats are classified on the basis of income. The government says it has simplified information on clusters by grouping two or three gram panchayats together in this system. But the Jaganmohan Reddy government that came to power in 2019 has brought reforms in local institutions. The secretariat system was introduced at the village and ward level as well as at the state level.

According to Jivo No. 110 issued by the government on 19 July 2019… Village Secretariat system was started. Approved posts of Panchayat Secretary Grade-V and Grade-VI. In view of these significant changes in field-level administration, the coalition government decided to bring back the cluster system. The State Government considered it necessary to reclassify the Gram Panchayats and modify the staffing pattern for each category. The District Collector has already submitted his proposals in these cases. These proposals need to be considered.

Form a committee to review…

Keeping these needs in mind, it is proposed to constitute a committee for a comprehensive review of the recommendations for redistribution of Gram Panchayats and adequate staffing pattern. The government formed a committee to examine the proposal.

1. D. Satyanarayan- Additional Commissioner (Committee Chairman)

2. V. Nagarjuna Sagar-Deputy Commissioner (Committee Convenor)

3. K. Anand – Commissioner OSD (Committee Member)

4. K. Sridevi – Assistant Commissioner (Committee Member)

Last date is 28th February.

This committee will consult with all stakeholders and take feedback from them. The committee will examine the proposals submitted by district collectors and submit its recommendations, including the staffing model, to the government on or before February 28.

540 types of services in secretariats…

The village and ward secretariat, brought in by former chief minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy under the previous YCP government, provided 540 types of services to the people. But after the coalition government came to power, he focused on the secretariats. There has been controversy regarding the continuity of the secretariats. In this sequence, 2.60 lakh village and ward volunteers associated with the secretariats have been removed. The government has also given a clear statement on volunteers in the presence of the assembly.

But secretariat employees are not allowed to do so. That is why the government is ready to classify the secretariats. At present the employees in the state secretariats are located at different places. The Government has recently decided to solve this problem by rationalization as there is an imbalance of staff in the secretariats.

Classification of employees into 3 types…

Efforts are being made to divide the secretariat system. There are 1,30,694 employees in 15,004 village and ward secretariats (11,162 village and 3,842 ward secretariats) in the state. The government has decided to divide the Village and Ward Secretariat jobs into three sections. The government has decided to divide it into 1. Multipurpose Officers, 2. Technical Officers and 3. Aspiring Secretaries.

The leaders of the Village and Ward Secretariat Employees Union are opposing the decision of the state government to distribute the employees. Due to this, there is a possibility of weakening of the secretariat system and increasing the burden on the employees. However, if this system is abolished… he believes that the secretaries in ward secretariats will be transferred to the Municipal Corporation Department and the employees in village secretariats will be transferred to the Panchayat Raj Department.

Rationalization should be abandoned-employees union

AP Village and Ward Secretariat Employees Welfare Association has demanded that the government should withdraw the policy of rationalization of Village and Ward Secretariat employees. State Honorary President AV Nageswara Rao, State President Anuradha, General Secretary Guruswami said…they demanded to stop the process of separating employees in the name of rationalization. Similarly, he requested to fill the vacant posts in Village Ward Secretariats and strengthen the Village Ward Secretariat system.

He demanded immediate payment of 9 months’ dues as arrears, which were lost due to delay in regularization of village and ward secretariat employees by the previous government. It has been requested to immediately give the salary increase to the employees of Village Ward Secretariat from the date of joining service. A request was also made to give the pending DA.

Every employee working in village and ward secretariats should be declared by their parent department. A specific promotion channel has been immediately announced and the work load of the overburdened secretariat staff has been reduced. Especially the sanitary secretaries working in ward secretariats should be ordered to follow the timings of the rest of the secretariat staff. He asked ANMs and Health Secretaries to reduce the workload of the app.

He demanded the government to withdraw the rationalization policy of village and ward secretariat employees. He said that by the end of this month, applications will be given to district collectors, ministers and public representatives.

Report: Jagadishwar Rao Jarajapu, Hindustan Times Telugu.